Automatic coupling.



iNO, 755.442. "PATENTBD MAR. z2, 1904. E. F. BRIGKBLL.

\ AUTOMATIC GOUPLING. APPLIGATION FILED 0013.24, 1903. N0 MODEL.

. :11.14A A Jkv l.

I zen of the-United States, residing at Bradford,

i atented `March 22,1904;

UNITED STAT-Es PATENT. @FMC-Ef ELI E. y`BRIcI EI.I.,- o E BEADEED,PENNSYLVANIA, AssIeNon oF oNE- THIRD To' AUGUST e. NEIoN.. oF BRADFORD,PENNSYLVANIA.

.SPECIFICATION forming part f. Letters Patent ND.- 755,442, dated March22, Y1904. .l i

' Appennini; ned @cabe 24,1903. sesamo. 178,441. (NQ man.)

To a/Z whom zt may cmi/cern* I Ile it known thatI, ELI F. BRI'CKEL'L,a'citiin thecounty of McKean and State of Pennsylvania, have inventednew and useful Improvements inv Automatic Couplings, of whichthefollowing is a specification.

with pipes for coupling adjacent ends thereof. The' object ot myinvention is to provide a construction whereby the insertion of the'ends Aof the pipes. in a casing automatically tightens the packing tomake a fluid For a'ir tight connection, whereby a great saving oftime-is effected in making tight joints between the adjacent ends ofpipes.

verticalfsectional view.l Fig. 3 isa detachedV view' of a portion of.the expanding member.

vReferring now to the drawings, l l indicate the two pipes with theirends extending l into a coupling casing or housing of 'steel orcasteiron 2. Thls casingl or housing 2 1s pro.-

- they maybe made of other. material, as wllbe' readily understood,without departing from vided lat each end with an internal annular'ywedge or conicalfshaped. surface and with van intermediate contractedannular. portion 4. 'A 'Placed within the said casing and within thewedge or conical 'shapedannular recesses formed bythe wedgeor conicalshaped sur- '35' faces 3 are thel packings '5. .These packings as here.shown, .consistvof rubber, though my invention.

My improvement .consists 1n tightened against the adjacent ends o f thesaid pipes 1. automatically when the pipes are placed in position in thecasing.v .The automatic means consists of themember 6, which isvnormally curved inward between its ends,I as shown in dottedzlines inFig. 2,' 'whereby' when the ends of the pipes are forced into theyposition sho'wn in full lines, Fig. 2, the.

iserted.

the means whereby these .packings'are compressed or curved portion ofsaid member is forced out-v ward, which expandsit, and thus compressesthepackings 5 tightly against the ends of the pipes and makes tightjoints.' The removal of the pipes from the said casing willautomatically release the packing, aswill be readily unv derstood.

'My invention 'relates to improvements in automatic couplings, andpertains particularly 'to alcoupling intended for' use in connection 'InFig. 1 the shape of the expanding member -6 is shown `in dottedlines,.and as'here shown it consists of wire, though' variations' inthis effect may be made, as will be readily understood, withoutlaifecting materially the spirit andscope Vomy invention,wherebytomatically lengthen or expand the member 6 longitudinally, and therebyautomaticallyV 'theV insertion of Athe .ends of. the pipes will auf icompress the packings and automaticallyxeffeet a tight connectionbetween the adjacent ends of two pipes."

` -If desired, clamping-screws 8 may: be 'used for the purpose ot'Vclamping the ends of the pipes within the casing after they areinsert-A ed therein, though such a provision is--usually Intheconstruction here' shown'v unnecessary. the escape of Huid or airbetween'the4 ends of the pipes will only tend toforce or compress thepackingmore vigorously and to makethe joint all the tighter, if such ispossible.

here shown, the rubberipackings 5 are circular incross-sec'tion, and thehousing2 preferably has the abruptshoulders l0, against which thepackings are seated when-placed in position before the ends. of

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desiretosecure by Letters Patent, is-

l. A? coupling-comprising a housing adapted ing a packing-receivingspace, a packing lothe pipes are in- `V rto receive the end of .a pipe,said 'housing hav-V 4 pipe and .be forced' against the packing by theendwise movement ofthe pipe to compress it. 2. A coupling comprising ahousing adapted to receive the adjacentends of two pipes, saidhousingprovided with two packing-receiving recesses adjacent the ends ofsaid pipes, packings located in said recesses, and a member locatedwithin said housing and adapted to ento receive the end of a pipe,said'housing having an annular packing-recess located external saidpipe,an annular packing located therein, and movable means located withinsaid housing, said ,means having a portion adapted to be engaged by thesaid Vpipe when placed -in the housing and moved by the endwise movementof the pipe toV compress said packing.

4. A coupling comprising a housing adaptedy to receive the end of apipe, said housing hav- `ing an annular packing-recess located externalsaid pipe, an annular packing located therein, and an expanding meanslocated within said housing, said means adapted to be engaged by saidpipe when placed in the housing and expanded in contact with saidpacking by the endwise movement of said pipe.

5. Acoupling comprising a housing adapted to receive the adjacent endsof two pipes, said housing having two packing-recesses locatedrespectively external the ends of said pipes, packings within saidrecesses, and laterallyexpanding compressing means within said housingand located between said recesses,said means adapted to engage saidpackings and having a portion engaged by the ends of said pipes whenthey are placed within the housing and forced laterally by the endwisemovev ment of the pipe to compress said packings.

6. A coupling comprising a housing adapted to receive the adjacent endsof two pipes, said housing having packing-receiving recesses locatedrespectively external the ends of said pipes, packing located therein,and a packingcompressing member within said housing, the

ends of said member adapted to engage said packmgs to compress them, andprovided with a normally inwardly-extending portion adapted to be forcedoutward by the ends of said pipes when placed in said housing.

7. Acoupling comprising a housing adapted to receive the adjacent' endsof two pipes, vsaid housing having packing-recesses at each end,packings within said recesses, and a longitudinally-extendingpacking-compressing member wi in the housing, the. ends of said memi beradapted to engage said packings and an intermediate portion normally inthe path traveled by the ends of said pipes and adapted to be forcedoutward, the housing having an intermediate contracted portion adaptedto prevent the said member from expanding outward between its ends.

8. A coupling comprising a housing adapted to receive the ends of apipe, said housing having an annular wedge-shaped packing-recess, apacking within said recess, yand a member within said housing adaptedtobe engaged by the end of said pipe and forced endwise against saidpacking by the endwise movement of the pipe to compress it within saidwedge-shaped recess.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of twosubscribing wit nesses.

A ELI F. BRICKELL.

Witnesses:

HARRY T. BRICKELL, HERMAN H. NORTH.

